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Wednesday, 1 August 2012

Will Le Bifthèque rise from the ashes in Montreal?

RESTAURANT RAP

Judging by the reaction to my last two columns, it
is pretty clear that readers of The Suburban
like to be kept up to date on the local restaurant scene. Which dining
establishments have closed? What kind of new developments can we expect? What
particular restaurants would readers like to see here?

Michael Seltzer

Le
Bifthèque: In my July 18 column I lamented about the closure
of Le Bifthèqueon Cote de Liesse in St. Laurent and the
other restaurants across Quebec and Canada which carried the same name. Well,
numerous sources have since told me that original owner Michael Seltzer has purchased the name and property from the
trustees handling the bankruptcy. The owners of Madisons New York Bar and Grill
were the last to run the popular steakhouse, but shut down operations more than
a year ago. Seltzer is currently the co-owner of Gamaroff’s Bar and Grill in
Hallandale, Florida.

Burger
Bar Cresent:Morrie
Baker, who cut his teeth in the business by operating two Ben and Jerry’s
locales, has made a success of Burger Bar Crescent. Is expansion in the cards? Will we see Burger Bar Taschereau,
Burger Bar Des Sources or Burger Bar Laval?

Krispy Kreme: The Greater Montreal area has only
one Krispy Kreme donut shop in South Shore Greenfield Park. There were short
lived experiences in Laval and at Marché Central, but I continue to receive
calls from readers who wish to bring back at least one to central Montreal. I
would not hold my breath on this one.

Dennys:
ReaderFrances Legault is a big fan of the Denny’s Restaurant chain.“Every year I go to Toronto and
always stop in Kingston on the way to and from and go to Denny's,” she says. “A
few years ago, I asked them if they thought they would be opening in Quebec,
and the answer was they had no plans to do so. The closest Denny`s to Montreal
is in Cornwall.”

Arby’s: I got this email from a reader named Charles. He wants Arby’s
locations in Montreal, praising their curly fries, shaved beef burgers andgreat sauces. Well
Charles, I just had some Arby’s roast beef in Maine and loved it. They did give
it a try in Montreal many years ago and the experiment failed.

Friendly’s:On July 25 I suggested Friendly’s set up
here. Beaconsfield travel guru Stephen
Pickford notes that the 76 year oldchain is under bankruptcy protection and currently shutting down
franchises across the States.

Great Harvest Bread
across from what used to be the Greyhound bus terminal in Burlington, Vermont...I
received lots of suggestions for the Cheescake Factory. We already have
somewhat of a clone of that chain – Elixor in Laval and on the West Island...
Some more to consider, include Gus’ Redshots, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Olive
Garden, Applebees, Swiss Chalet,
Fuddruckers, Johnny Rockets, IHOP, The Outback, Ponderosa and The Works Burgers
from Ottawa. Red Lobster left town well more than a decade ago for reasons I
still do not understand, yet it continues to thrive elsewhere in Canada,
including Ottawa and Toronto...

There are already too many restaurants in Montreal and not enough customers. Why is everybody naming US restaurants. They (US) have the population base to support the restaurants they have. Walk down any main street in Montreal and there is a restaurant every (10)feet. And they are selling the same food for .50 cents- $1.00 more or less. Competition is good. Without the customer base and variety you have stagnation. Sounds like Montreal.

Most popular cities of America and Europe. Burgeoning with activities and excitement,more 24 hour Toronto Laundromat Toronto today is garnering great interest as a real estate investment destination as well. Whether it is Toronto commercial real estate or condos for sale in Toronto, the investment in real estate here seems very promising in the long run